martes, mayo 23, 2017

JAPAN: Young Japanese shun U.S., Europe as destinations for studying abroad

Young Japanese shun U.S., Europe as destinations for studying abroad

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The Yomiuri Shimbun

May 23, 2017, The Japan News

The Yomiuri ShimbunCountries
favored by young Japanese as destinations to study abroad are changing,
partly because of frequent terrorist attacks in Europe and the U.S.
government’s shift in immigration policies.
The United States and
Britain, which had been most favored before, are now being shunned. It
is said that Canada, long popular among Japanese students, and Australia
are now favored as study abroad destinations.
To enhance Japan’s
international competitiveness, both the public and private sectors are
encouraging young Japanese to study abroad.
But there is concern about Japanese students who are hesitant to study abroad.
In March this year, a seminar was held in Tokyo mainly for university
students who are considering studying abroad. Attendees asked many
questions about what it is like being a foreign student in the United
States and European countries.
“I can’t feel comfortable about
the United States’ immigration policy now,” said Kengo Kumon, 19, from
Yokohama. “I prefer a country that is more tolerant of foreigners than
the United States.”
He said he was considering studying in Canada.
Ayano Watanabe, 20, a third-year student at Nihon University’s College
of Humanities and Sciences who planned to study abroad for a short
period, said: “The attractiveness of the United States as a destination
to study abroad has not changed, as there are many entities there that
accept foreign students, such as language schools. But I’m anxious about
possibly being discriminated against.”
She also expressed worry about the recent terror attacks in Europe.
“Watching recent news reports, I can’t consider any European country,” she said.
A terrorist attack occurred near the British Parliament in London in March. Five people were killed in the incident.
On April 20 in Paris, one police officer was killed, and two police
officers were injured in a shooting on the Champs-Elysees. A series of
other terrorist attacks have also occurred in France.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

In the United States, President Donald Trump aims to impose strict regulations on immigrants.
Partly because of those factors, the Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology Ministry said it has recently received numerous
inquiries about the situation in European countries and the United
States.
Now many young Japanese favor Canada and Australia as
their destinations because the conditions in those countries are good,
by comparison.
The top six spots in the popularity rankings for
study-abroad destinations among people who departed in summer last year
were all held by cities in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, according
to Ryugaku Journal, an information magazine about studying abroad.
Compared with rankings 10 years ago, the rankings of Los Angeles and London fell.
“Due to the effects from the inauguration of [U.S.] President Trump and
the series of terrorist incidents, the tendency to shun European
countries and the United States is only growing stronger,” said an
official of the magazine’s publisher.
Govt worried about decline
The Japanese government worries that there may be fewer Japanese who
wish to study abroad due to recent international developments.
There were 84,456 Japanese who studied at universities and graduate
schools overseas in fiscal 2015, according to the Japan Student Services
Organization.
The government set a goal of annually sending
about 120,000 university students abroad by 2020, when the Tokyo Olympic
and Paralympic Games are to be held.
However, the reality is
that young Japanese have been less enthusiastic about studying abroad
than their counterparts in China and South Korea.
When the Japan
Youth Research Institute, an incorporated foundation, conducted a survey
of high school students in four countries — Japan, the United States,
China and South Korea — in 2012, the percentage of students who were
“interested” or “somewhat interested” were 70.7 percent in South Korea,
69.5 percent in China and 64.6 percent in the United States.
The
figure in Japan was the lowest at 57.2 percent, and the percentage of
Japanese students who replied that they were not at all interested was
15.9 percent. This figure was more than double those in South Korea and
China.
As to why they did not wish to study abroad, more than
half of those who stated their disinterest said that living in their own
country is comfortable.
In a survey by the education ministry in
fiscal 2013, in which about 500,000 high school students responded,
about 56 percent of them replied they did not wish to study abroad.
Since 2013, the education ministry has implemented a project dubbed,
“Tobitate! Ryugaku Japan” (Go study abroad, Japan!), with cooperation
from private companies. The project aims to encourage more young
Japanese to study abroad and to have more Japanese of all ages study
abroad.
More than 200 companies, which agree to foster global-minded people, expressed support and have cooperated with the project.
The companies have partially financed high school and university students’ studies abroad.
“Though we assume there are a sizable number of students and their
parents who feel worried, overseas situations don’t mean Japanese are
rejected overseas,” said a ministry official in charge of the issue.
“Therefore, we hope Japanese will not hesitate to study in other
countries.”Speech